Comic Vine Review

Injustice: Gods Among Us #33 - Chapter 33 Review

Captain Atom has failed to stop Superman. How will the Man of Steel respond when he returns to Earth?

The Good

Injustice fans, the day has finally come (I'm trying so hard to be as spoiler-free as possible here) and man, it packs quite a wallop. The last issue was all about superhuman punches that could shatter mountains, but this issue is all about striking you right in the heart and making you want to scream "nooo" like Darth Vader. While I do have one key gripe with what goes down -- and what goes down absolutely must be read -- there's no denying writer Tom Taylor does a fantastic job making it an incredibly powerful turn of events and tops it off with a beyond touching final page.

The individual's captions are gripping and left me shattered. The decision to let this incident play out from a certain person's perspective was an excellent choice. There's no need to see what occurred (let's be honest, this comic has more than enough violence to be found elsewhere) and jumping in when all is said and done felt far more compelling and shocking. Yes, even though I knew the outcome (as will anyone else who played the game's story mode), I was still floored by how it plays out. Even with my complaint (we'll get to it in 'The Bad'), this course of events still shook me to the core and honestly left me speechless for a few moments. It's a brilliantly handled emotional scene and a thoroughly sentimental sendoff.

Last week, Jheremy Raapack worked with David Lopez and Santi Casas to make an awesome looking issue. This week, Bruno Redondo worked with the colorists, and while the visuals don't deliver anything as jaw-dropping as the splash page of Captain Atom slugging Supes in the face (seriously, it'll be hard to top that), they're still very solid. I particularly love the trio of panels on the opening page. Picking up after last issue's cliffhanger, we see Superman floating in space and there's some beautiful use coloring. The twisted hero is covered in darkness as the impressively bright sun emerges from beyond the well-detailed Earth. The light then reaches him, revealing the toll his fight with Captain Atom took on his body. Then the light awakens him, revealing a bloody eye. It's a great way to build the intensity. Also worth praising is the strong emphasis on shading and bold use of red when Superman makes some drastic decisions. When it comes to presenting us with a darker version of Kal, there's some panels here which truly deliver and then some.

The Bad

Up until this point, I could understand Big Blue crossing the line. Joker wiped out an entire city, including the woman he loves and his unborn child. The Parademons? They were going to devastate heavily populated cities and he put an abrupt stop to that, saving countless lives. Martian Manhunter (allegedly!)? Saved Wonder Woman. But against Ollie, a human who is clearly by no means the one calling the shots with this latest plan? It's kind of tough to swallow for me and seems like a drastic and super abrupt mental change -- almost like a forced push to make this character more like the villain he becomes. I understand he's lashing out after everything he's just endured and that's totally understandable at first. The epic backhand was completely rational -- after all, Diana's hurt, he's upset they tried to kill him, and now poor ol' Pa Kent has an arrow in his shoulder. Seeing his father hurt is obviously what set him off (he was seemingly fine before that), but for him to then continue and literally pummel this defenseless person to death felt like too much to me, especially after seeing how humiliating and damaging a mere smack was. I understand he needs to become the terrible brat we know in the game and this was obviously some much needed venting, but considering all he's already endured and how he's handled it thus far, I couldn't help but feel like it was a massive leap in mentality and just a quick way of transforming him into the character we see in the fighting game.

The Verdict

There's no question I'd give this issue a 4.5 if I had the ability to give half-stars. Superman's decision to continue attacking Ollie feels a bit too drastic based on how we've seen him conduct himself. It almost seems like an abrupt push to turn him into the evil man we know in the game. But, despite that personal gripe, what follows is masterfully handled and delivers a wicked emotional punch. Overall, I did indeed love this issue and the sheer emotion it made me experience vastly outweighs my complaint over how we got there. Because of that, this is yet another chapter that'll earn 5-stars.

I too really felt that emotional jab at the end and agree with the bad,i was kind of surprised at that sudden change in superman...but people just tried to kill him and then threaten the lives of his parents..after all that superman's been through maybe he just went into a rage he couldn't get out of,was still pretty jarring though.

I too really felt that emotional jab at the end and agree with the bad,i was kind of surprised at that sudden change in superman...but people just tried to kill him and then threaten the lives of his parents..after all that superman's been through maybe he just went into a rage he couldn't get out of,was still pretty jarring though.

For sure and it's clear that's what Taylor was going for (or at least I think so). But as I said in 'The Bad,' I had a lot of personal issues rattling around in my head as it was carried out.

I love this book...I really do...but even with Clark losing Lois and the baby the we he did I just don't see how Superman could justify everything he is doing...it just seems like such a huge jump in direction for the character to take...this issue solidifies him as a villain

That was pretty brutal. I was never really a Green Arrow fan before, but my level of respect for the character definitely rose after reading this issue. He could've tried to run away like anybody would've when being stared down by Superman, but instead he put the mission before himself.

This issue was no surprise at all. Guess I knew what the outcome was going to be. Batman hasn't killed anyone. What's the tally on how many people has Supes has killed? I see him as the villain now and there's no coming back from it. With every issue, Supes is more of an as*hole brat. Killing Ollie in front of his parents. It's a prick move to me.

i know this is really evil of me, but im actually glad to see diana injured from captain atom explosion. i just seem to hate her so much in this series. its as if she is responsible for the regime as much as the joker.

My jaw just dropped, due the amount of spoilers in your review. It's insane how bad you've spoiled everything, who didn't play the game and maybe was not expecting what will happen in the comic.

I've played the game, so I knew all along what would happen, but someone who hasn't ... HAS TO BE THE BIGGEST IDIOT ON THIS PLANET to not grasp who you're talking about, even though you put the name of that person in spoiler tags.

You went way too much into detail and described what's happening in the comic. That's not a review, but rather a summary of the crucial events.

Your other Injustice reviews were good, but this one ... oh my. Now I actually think that you did it on purpose to troll. If that's the case, then that's a funny move! If you actually think that you kept it spoiler free by adding

GREEN ARROW

's name into the spoiler tags, then dude... duuuuuudeeeeeee.

Man his review is just fine. The only thing he said that could have meant green arrow was the part about ma and pa kent. You are the one who just blatantly put it out there.

I always read Gregg's review before i read Injustice, i dont think it was too spoilery.

Up to this point, i was honestly cheering for Superman (have never played the game) coz i love an angry Superman trying to make a difference. This is the issue where i have to accept, ok Superman isnt just an angry anti-hero he is going full villain mode now.

The panel with Superman's heat vision, that just so cool. Red burning eyes, with smokes coming out, heat vision rocks as far as art stuff is concerned.

@k4tzm4n: Gregg, i am away and will be getting my comics only on Monday, could you do me a small favour man. Could you please, please, please review Thanos Rising # 05 and Uncanny Avengers # 11, if no one does it.

It was pretty clear what would happen to GA dealing with a ticked off Superman, and I do agree that it's a tragic loss, but the thing that bug's me is way hasn't Batman, GA or anyone taken out Sup's with a Kryptonite weapon up to this point? You know your dealing with Superman, and your going to his home, trying to take those enhance pills, and your only plan was to distract him hoping you'll have enough time to take his things and get away with it and use Cap Atom to muscle down Superman? C'mon.

At least GA died as a hero, thinking about woman he really loves. Y'know, when Supes lands a final punch, and Dinah feels it... No doubtie-doubt - it was one of the emotionally strongest moments in this comic book so far. Always loved GA-Canary dynamic duo, and here it is.

I'm gonna buy collected edition. Oh, and yes: as I recall, there must be storyline with Catwoman's supposed "betrayal" because she's afraid Bats would be next. Where's my popcorn?

Ok thanks... btw arent you allowed to call dips on Thanos Rising :p, the issue got no attention as far as review goes, apart from first couple of issues.. shame.. but meh i am a huge Thanos fan so i will like anything with Thanos in it :p

@k4tzm4n: thanks introducing me to this series thru your reviews and consistent raving whenever your on podcast. This series has been really consistent. This particular issue got me curled up and sad. Haha

@k4tzm4n: thanks introducing me to this series thru your reviews and consistent raving whenever your on podcast. This series has been really consistent. This particular issue got me curled up and sad. Haha

This issue was no surprise at all. Guess I knew what the outcome was going to be. Batman hasn't killed anyone. What's the tally on how many people has Supes has killed? I see him as the villain now and there's no coming back from it. With every issue, Supes is more of an as*hole brat. Killing Ollie in front of his parents. It's a prick move to me.

Up until this issue, Superman has really done nothing wrong. If anything Batman has been a d*** to Superman and his team(especially Hawkgirl) and even Green Arrow, Am not a fan of Green Arrow's treatment in this book. This is the issue where Superman turned evil because it was needed by the plot set by a video game, otherwise Superman hasn't been half bad.

@nerd_of_a_hero: its the same reason superman hasnt just burst into the batcave and used heat vision on them all or hunt them down and speed blitzed them, if he did there would be no story plus this superman is not an idiot look at how he handled cat women and her kryptonite, this superman actually thinks and can plan plus he also uses his abilities more effectively than canon supes